Charles Humfrey was born 1 Dec. 1947, the son of Brian and Marjorie Humfrey. He was educated at the Lodge School, Barbados (Barbados Scholar, 1966) and St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford (winning the Webb Medley Junior Prize, 1968). In 1971 he married Enid Thomas, having two sons and one daughter.

Humfrey joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1969, and his diplomatic career included: Tokyo [Japan], 1971–76; South East Asian Department, FCO, 1976–79; Private Secretary to Minister of State, 1979–81; UK Mission, New York, 1981–85; Southern African Department, FCO, 1985–87; Counsellor, Ankara [Turkey], 1988–90; Counsellor (Economic), Tokyo, 1990–94; Head of African Department (Southern), FCO, 1994–95; Minister, Tokyo, 1995–99; Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, 2000–03; Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia, 2004–08.